Cù Bòcan, the experimental arm of Tomatin Distillery, launched as we speak Creation #8, the very first identified peated whisky matured in ice wine casks, and the oldest launch in Cù Bòcan’s restricted Creations sequence up to now.
This very distinctive launch pairs two uncommon cask sorts, Canadian ice wine casks, sourced from the family-owned Niagara vineyard Pillitteri, with an 18-year-old peated spirit and brings apricot jam, candied peach and pineapple syrup. Spanish Verdejo casks from the French-owned Rueda property Belondrade held a 16-year-old spirit and lend daring citrus, grassy and natural notes. The Verdejo casks had been stuffed simply weeks after being emptied, designed to seize the wine at its most vivid.
Ice wine itself is a rarity, this candy dessert wine pressed from grapes left to freeze on the vine and crushed at round –7°C yields solely a trickle of intensely concentrated juice. The pairing appears symbolic, Cù Bòcan itself distilled within the coldest weeks of the yr when low water temperatures velocity condensation within the stills and provides the brand new make a subtly oilier texture.
Creation #8 follows final November’s Creation #7, a Pineau des Charentes Rouge and American virgin oak launch that marked twenty years of peated manufacturing at Tomatin. Throughout the sequence, the model has reached for bourbon, sherry, Port, Cognac, Japanese Shochu, imperial stout and rum casks from Jamaica, Guyana and Barbados, however ice wine is a primary.
Jamie Muir, Distillery Supervisor at Tomatin, mentioned “Marking the oldest launch within the sequence up to now, Creation #8 is a pioneering single malt, marrying our gently peated spirit with the daring sweetness of Canadian ice wine casks, one thing we imagine has by no means been carried out earlier than with a peated Scotch. Equally, the Verdejo casks and the experimental choice to fill them shortly after emptying have launched a vibrant citrus and natural dimension.”
On the nostril, the whisky reveals baked apples, poached pears, apricot jam and orange blossom, threaded with a wisp of heather smoke. The palate is silky and candy earlier than turning more energizing, with honeycomb, lime zest and inexperienced grape over earthy smoke. The end fades into smoky honey, citrus peel and mushy oak spice.
Even the bottle feels distinctive, housed in Cù Bòcan’s bespoke twisted bottle and a colourway of electrical purple and neon inexperienced, its engraved contours echo each the wisp of Cù Bòcan’s signature smoke and the staves of the casks that formed it
Peat has been a part of Tomatin’s story for the reason that distillery’s founding in 1897, although manufacturing shifted to an unpeated model mid-century. The peated run was revived in 2005 and has closed the distillery’s calendar each winter since. Cù Bòca, ‘ghost canine’ in Gaelic, named after a spirit mentioned to hang-out the village of Tomatin — launched as a model in 2013.
Creation #8 is bottled at 46% ABV, pure in color and non-chill filtered. It’s accessible now through the Tomatin web site, with 3,600 bottles launched worldwide. It’s a terrific alternative so as to add a really distinctive whisky to your assortment.
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